Good hygiene is important for people of all ages, but especially for senior citizens. An elderly person may recover from illness more slowly, and seniors often have underlying medical conditions. Poor hygiene can make older adults more susceptible to infections and disease.
Maintaining good hygiene is critically important in nursing homes to protect residents. Although administrators and staff should understand this, residents’ hygiene may still suffer. Residents can then develop infections, sepsis, and other serious and potentially life-threatening medical conditions.
If your loved one was injured or died in a nursing home and you think that poor hygiene was the cause or a contributing factor, contact Pintas & Mullins Law Firm. We can investigate to figure out if the facility was liable and, if so, pursue financial compensation. Call our office to talk to a member of our team.
Why Hygiene Is So Important in Nursing Homes
Many nursing home residents are unable to complete basic activities of daily living themselves. They may need help using the bathroom, or they may be incontinent and may need to have staff change their diapers.
Seniors in nursing homes often require assistance with bathing and dressing. Failure to help residents with toileting, bathing, and changing their clothes can make senior citizens vulnerable to infection.
If employees do not provide assistance as necessary, residents may attempt to handle those issues themselves. Senior citizens who have medical conditions that make it difficult to walk may then fall and become injured.
Residents with wounds from injuries or surgeries need caregivers to clean their wounds and change their dressings regularly to prevent infection. If a wound becomes infected, a patient may then develop sepsis, a life-threatening reaction to an existing infection. Elderly nursing home residents are particularly vulnerable to sepsis because they often have weakened immune systems and serious underlying health conditions. Sepsis can be treated effectively if it is caught early, but if that does not happen, it can be fatal.
Unclean facilities can contribute to the spread of infectious diseases. Rooms and common areas that do not receive regular maintenance can contribute to an unsanitary environment that can endanger the health and safety of nursing home residents.
How an Oklahoma City Soiled Clothes or Other Signs of Poor Hygiene Lawyer May Be Able to Help Your Family
An Oklahoma City soiled clothes or other signs of poor hygiene lawyer may speak to you and to your loved one, if possible, to learn about conditions in the nursing home. We can interview nursing home employees, as well as family members, other residents, and witnesses, to gather information on actions that staff members did or did not take that may have led to your family member’s injuries.
We may review records to understand your relative’s medical history and may seek guidance from medical experts. We may also investigate to find out if the nursing home was cited or sued in the past for similar problems.
Abuse of residents in long-term care facilities affects millions of nursing home residents across the United States, according to the National Center on Elder Abuse. Neglect related to poor hygiene often occurs because staff do not possess adequate training in the importance of hygiene and how to keep residents and the facility clean. A nursing home may also be understaffed, and employees may be unable to give residents the time and attention they need and deserve.
Nursing Home Regulations
If the nursing home where your loved one lived did not follow the nursing home staffing standards required by the Department of Justice, or if those employees did not receive proper training, the facility may be found liable for injuries that your family member suffered due to neglect.
If nursing home employees failed to treat your relative’s underlying infection and your loved one developed sepsis, the nursing home may be liable for the resulting injuries or death.
Nursing home residents have the right to receive quality care and to live in an environment free of neglect or abuse. If your loved one was injured or died as a result of poor hygiene at an Oklahoma City nursing home, we may find that the facility and its staff were negligent.
Under Oklahoma law, abusing or neglecting a person living in a nursing home and abusing or neglecting a vulnerable adult are both felonies punishable by imprisonment and a fine. We may seek financial compensation for your family member’s injuries by filing a claim against the nursing home’s insurance policy, or we may file a lawsuit against the facility.
For a free legal consultation with a Oklahoma City Soiled Clothes or Other Signs of Poor Hygiene Lawyer serving Oklahoma City, call (800) 794-0444
Seek Legal Help from an Oklahoma City Soiled Clothes or Other Signs of Poor Hygiene Lawyer
Nursing home residents are often unable to speak out and advocate for themselves when they suffer abuse or neglect. They may have Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, or physical problems that make it difficult to communicate, as well as limited contact with family members. Pintas & Mullins Law Firm may be able to help you.
If your loved one was injured or died in a nursing home, you may not be able to afford to hire an attorney. If we take on your case, we only collect payment if we secure financial compensation on behalf of a client, either by settling out of court or by going to trial and receiving an award from a jury.
We can provide a free consultation, and we may create a plan to seek justice for you or your loved one. Call our office to talk to us about what your family has endured and how we may be able to help.
Call or text (800) 794-0444 or complete a Free Case Evaluation form
